Study Groups
You are welcome to come and see us and/or join a group any time!
Please find all classes for children and adults below - click on the Group name to read more!
Volunteers in the classrooms needed! If you are interested
in teaching or substitute teaching in the future, please contact
Henriikka Järvi. Other voluntary jobs available here!
St Albans Finnish school was founded in September 1985. It is a part of the worldwide
network of Finnish Schools supported by the Ministry of Education in Finland.
We are also a UK Registered Charity (number 1058809).
The school also act as an important messenger about Finland and Finnishness.
Our Syllabus is planned to take into account the needs of individual students and their families.
Please refer to the page 'Enemmän Meistä'
(in Finnish only) for more details on the Syllabus.
Student Groups
Our school covers the following classes, name of teacher included:
Groups for children and the Young
Irma Caithness &
Tanja Bolt
The toddlers learn Finnish whilst playing and singing together with the mummy or daddy.
The parents are encouraged to speak Finnish and take advantage of the numerous story books, cassettes and DVDs
at the school library.
Kristiina Kumpuniemi-Cooper, Heli Tenhue & Anu Palmer
Social interaction with other Finnish speakers is important and the
playgroup is ment to provide fun moments for the child.
Through creatitive activities, interaction, music, books, play and trips learning
themes such as me and my body, Finnish Seasons, Finnish holidays, colours, etc
Club (4-5yrs)
Nina Stebbing & Heli Galvez & Katriina Baxandall
Learning by singing, playing, reading books, interaction, puppets etc creativity.
Themes chose from the child's own world of experiences such as travelling, hobbies, home
food, close relatives etc... Important to learn the Finnish public holidays and
traditional events via creativite activities
(Christmas, Aprilfool's day, Easter, 1st of May, Mothers'/Fathers' Day, Midsummer)
Mari Passchier & Milja-Maritta Innila
We play games and do art and crafts relating to the subject of the lesson. Some of us learn to write
the alphabet and numbers, others may already know how to read short words. Can you tell me what time
it is in Finnish? When do we celebrate Christmas? The most important thing is that everyone enjoys
talking Finnish!
Anne Lehtinen &
Sanna Saarinen
Book used: 'Hauska matka'
('A Fun Journey')
We practise alphabets, learning to write and
read as well as learning to listen and understand written words. Exciting stories lead us to many adventures,
e.g. visiting at the animal island and deep
in the sea. We are learning new words, discuss and make small plays. We are having fun together
and learn about new things from Finland and Finnish language, including
most important public holidays and traditional events.
Heni Järvi (Head Teacher),
Matias Rantanen
& Hanna Saalinki
We are reading aloud, quietly, together, alone; we are writing stories and truths;
we are listening, discussing, playing, laughing, investigating. Topics arise from a
book entitled Hauska Matka A Fun Journey: its Story Boat is taking us on a trip
around the world. While going through different countries and tales we are tackling with
Finnish grammar. Our language skills vary but we support each other in our learning.
Birgit Zekria
& Magnus Myreen
The Swedish group is ment for the children of Finnish-Swedish speakers' families.
The teaching is based on verbal and visual communication,
with emphasis on story telling, singing and creative activities.
The children's parents are involved as unofficial classroom
assistants, helping to bridge the age gaps of the children.
Special efforts are made to help the Swedish speakers see themselves as belonging to the majority group.
Groups for the Adults
Adult students - beginners, intermediate and advanced - use the book "Finn Talk 1" and "2"
by T Leney & L Needham,
order form available here.
This group is suitable for beginners with no previous experience. The learners will learn the very
basics of the Finnish language: the alphabets, pronunciation, basic vocabulary and grammar,
greetings and introducing oneself (who one is, where one is from, what is one's profession etc).
The learners will also learn about Finnish culture, customs, geography, and history.
This group is suitable for students who have some knowledge
of basic Finnish, e.g. having studied for a year or two at the beginners level.
In addition they should feel comfortable with the vocabulary and the grammar of our
text book up to unit 5 (Finn Talk).
The emphasis is on active participation and working with in a small group
(speaking and writing tasks, listening and reading comprehension).
This group is good for students with a slightly better grasp of Finnish, continuing from Finn Talk Group 1.
We cover variety of themes and topics of which "Finnish food day" is repeated annually, that's when Finnish food and/or cakes are on offer in the class.
Also newspaper and other articles translated and discussed. Grammar as and when required.
Material is from various sources. *Sense of humour helps in this group!
